This Dark Souls/Sekiro-style game shows the power of next-gen

Something to look forward to: While there’s been plenty of talk about next-gen games and how jaw-dropping they’ll be, we haven’t seen too many examples that have made us go “Wow!” But Black Myth: Wu Kong, a new action RPG from Chinese indie developer Game Science Studio, does just that—and it’s coming to PC, too.

In some very early pre-alpha footage, the thirteen-minute trailer shows off what looks like a Dark Souls/Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice/Bloodborne-esque game for the PS5 and XSX (and Ampere/Big Navi) generation.

The game is inspired by Journey to the West, a 16th-century Chinese novel—the same one that 1979 TV series Monkey, and many other shows, books, and movies, is based on. Taking control of Monkey King, Sun Wukong, players face off against mythological beasts, some of which are enormous, but they can be taken down using the 72 different abilities on offer.

Created in Unreal Engine 4, it looks gorgeous and fast-paced. You can even turn into a cicada to hide from giant monsters.

“Studio was established in 2014. Has worked on 3+ games. Has some ex Tencent Games staff with average 13 years experience,” tweeted industry analyst Daniel Ahmad. “I counted more than 40 staff. They are recruiting 19 more.”

Studio was established in 2014. Has worked on 3+ games. Has some ex Tencent Games staff with average 13 years experience.

I counted more than 40 staff. They are recruiting 19 more.

I’d imagine the game is still a couple years from release minimum. Hopefully it does release. pic.twitter.com/5JsDltHioc

— Daniel Ahmad (@ZhugeEX) August 20, 2020

The relatively small team means the game remains far from launch, though adding extra staff and the attention the gameplay footage has brought will no doubt help the development process. Game Science says it shouldn’t take 500 years to complete, so expect it before Star Citizen, at least.

This week also saw the release of a video for Observer System Redux, a next-gen version of the 2017 cyberpunk horror starring the late Rutger Hauer. The new 4K lighting, textures, and character models look great, but while the game is set to launch on XSX and PS5 this “holiday,” there’s no mention of a PC version.